Coelopidae

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Seaweed or Kelp Flies

Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Arthropoda
Class:	Insecta
Order:	Diptera
Suborder:	Brachycera
Subsection:	Acalyptratae
Superfamily:	Sciomyzoidea
Family:	Coelopidae

Genera

Coelopidae or seaweed or kelp flies are a family of Diptera. There are less than 40 species worldwide.The family is found in temperate areas, with species occurring in the southern Afrotropical, Holarctic Regions and Australasian (which has the most species)Regions.

1 Family characteristics
2 Biology
3 Identification (literature)
4 Species lists
5 Other
6 Reference and sources
7 Links

[edit] Family characteristics

See [1] Image of pupa [2]

[edit] Biology

Coelopids are found in the wrack zone of temperate seashores where the larvae feed on rotting seaweed. They are sometimes very abundant in this habitat. They go through several generations a year. The females lay their eggs in small batches into fresh alga banks.There 3 larval instars. Larvae feed in a bacteria laden mass Pupation is seldom in the alga substrate that soon collapses, but more frequently in the highest sand layers. Larvae are also found in winter wrack heaps as bacteria raise temperatures to 20-30° C even if the heap is superficially frozen.Larvae and pupae have numerous enemies. Beside birds there is the staphylinid Aleochara and suites of parasites confined to algal banks.

[edit] Identification (literature)

Note: Considerable intraspecific variation in some species, especially in overall size, wing length, and setal characters has led to considerable splitting at the generic level.

Malloch, J.R. 1933. The genus Coelopa Meigen (Diptera, Coelopidae). Ann. Mag. Nat. Hist. (10) 11: 339-50.

[edit] Species lists

[edit] Other

Coelopa frigida (Fabricius) has been reared in the laboratory and used for genetic studies.

[edit] Reference and sources

McAlpine, D.K. 1998. Family Coelopidae.in Papp, L. nd Darvas, B. (ed.): Contributions to a Manual of Palaearctic Diptera. 3: 335-340. Science Herald, Budapest.